Hornbill-on-Hornbill Predation: A Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis) Preying on a Juvenile Malabar Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros griseus) in the Southern Western Ghats

Abstract

The Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis) is predominantly frugivorous but may take animal prey, particularly during the breeding period. Direct observations of avian prey handling, especially involving another hornbill species, remain scarce. This short communication documents an unusual interaction observed on 28 April 2026 in the Nelliyampathy reserve forest, Palakkad District, Kerala, in the southern Western Ghats. At approximately 12:30 h, a male Great Hornbill was observed holding the carcass of a juvenile Malabar Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros griseus) while perched on a Ficus sp. tree. The Great Hornbill repeatedly tossed and struck the carcass, dislodging feathers, and continued manipulating it for approximately 15 min. No clear ingestion of tissue or transport of the carcass was observed. A female Great Hornbill remained on another branch of the same tree during the interaction. A monitored Great Hornbill nest containing a nestling was located approximately 500 m from the observation site, although the observed birds could not be individually linked to that nest. The behaviour is consistent with carcass handling or prey processing, but the circumstances leading to the juvenile’s death were not observed; therefore, active predation cannot be confirmed. This observation broadens the documented range of unusual interspecific interactions involving Great Hornbills and highlights the value of continued field monitoring for clarifying the occurrence and context of avian prey use.